Two endorsements came this week from the Williamson County Sun, excerpts below:
Keep Maldonado in Office.
Moreover, in her one and a half years as a state legislator, she has been both active and effective, passing a key education bill to expand the East Williamson County Higher Education Center in Taylor and Hutto and securing serious money for three educational projects that should pay handsome financial dividends throughout the county: $805,000 to establish a Renewable Energy Training Institute in Williamson County, $16 million for the Texas A&M Health Science Center in Round Rock and $350,000 for the Texas State University’s Round Rock campus.
She also secured $10 million for the expansion of FM 1460 (the old Georgetown-Round Rock highway), which was critically needed as Seton Medical Center Williamson, Scott & White Healthcare – Round Rock, Texas State University, and Austin Community College continued to build out along University Boulevard between Interstate 35 and FM 1460.
This was urgent and had been blocked for several years; Maldonado pushed this money through roadblocks. No area of the country is better primed to boost education, medical care and financial clout over the next decade than this one – and though technically within Round Rock, Georgetown will greatly benefit from these developments.
As a member of the House Committee on Defense and Veterans Affairs, Representative Maldonado has educated herself on the needs of Texas veterans and is working to get better regional medical care for former military and their families, especially as veterans are transitioning back into their home communities.
In short, Representative Maldonado is on a roll. She has worked hard, earning plaudits for concrete advances in education, transportation and economic development. It would (be) silly for Williamson County voters to allow the good will, connections and experience she has accumulated to go to waste.
The Sun strongly recommends her reelection so she can continue to become a more effective legislator for the county.
Maurice for Commissioner.
Mr. Maurice has the background: He graduated number one in his class from University of Texas’ honors business program, then graduated from UT’s MBA program and its School of Law. After law school he worked for Pete Winstead’s Austin law firm, which did virtually all the legal work for Michael Dell and Dell Computers, which soon became Mr. Maurice’s main focus. After four years with Winstead, Dell recruited him to its fledgling in-house law firm. While at Dell, Mr. Maurice was the legal guide for the development of the Dell Campus at Round Rock.
After nearly 10 years with Dell, Mr. Maurice retired and moved with his wife, Shawn to Hutto, to raise horses. He volunteered his legal skills to Hutto, which was fighting a large LCRA transmission line and the county landfill. He became active in the community, co-founding the Williamson County Public Policy Coalition and serving on the board of the Hutto Citizens Group and Jonah Water Utility District.
He sees Precinct 4 as having intriguing possibilities – a “nice growth corridor” from the medical and educational complex at the junction of FM 1460 and University Boulevard continuing east on Chandler Road, which he pledges to finish building. But the area’s future is threatened by visions of a landfill towering 140 feet over the prairie below. His solution: keep the height at 70 feet, spread the landfill over a wider span, so that it resembles rolling hills and master plan it so developers aren’t scared off.
This is an issue that strikes at the heart of Precinct 4, which could use a savvy attorney with deep knowledge of development and finance to help drive fresh and healthy development. Jeff Maurice appears to be just the man for the job.
How significant a story do you think the news is that Gov. Perry’s appointees, according to a memo from a whistle blower being circulated by the Bill White campaign, pressured managers of the Texas Teacher Retirement System to invest in companies that benefit his political donors? How does this affect your thinking about Gov. Perry’s campaign for re-election?
The closest anyone of them got to defending Perry was an “everyone does it” excuse which they later described as “.. a poor rationale to defend anyone”. Here are several more excerpts:
The main reason this story is significant is that, if true, these allegations add to a very disturbing pattern
What catches my attention is that this is another alleged example of indirect pay for play…this is the kind of politicized, tangled mess created when one person is in office for so long.
So this issue is one of the main examples of why, precisely, I will not support Perry for the first time in over a decade. The thing is, we shouldn’t be betting teachers’ economic future on state boosterism — or worse, friendship with the governor.
Perhaps this revelation is coming too late to make a difference, but it should. On top of the Emerging Technology Fund report, this is one more damning example of the way in which Perry appointees and allies operate…You can’t say we weren’t warned.
This makes for decisions that work to benefit a few at the expense of hard working Texans.
It’s foolish to deny there’s a well-connected Perry crowd that’s cashing in.
Conservatives are quick to say they are protecting our hard-earned dollars, but from whom?
The prospect of the governor’s appointees playing politics with teacher pension funds is significant — and very disappointing.
But amazingly, a large percentage of the electorate appears willing to give Perry a pass on his many questionable entanglements.
I’m far more concerned with the governor’s intervention in awarding Emerging Technology Fund grants to his political supporters — including overriding the board of experts that orginally rejected at least one of those awards. That stinks, and the governor’s hands were all over it.
There are a couple of very important themes that are key to highlight in these responses. One is that there’s a pattern of cronyism – favors for campaign contributors – during Perry’s time as governor. The other is that he’s been in office too long. In Texas because the appointed power is really the governor’s main power, it stands to reason that this kind of cronyism would be prevalent, for a long-serving governor.
Because of the staggered terms of boards and commissions it can take years for a governor to get their people in place and get control the bureaucracy. And Perry’s time in office is unprecedented. At the end of his current term Perry will have done something no Texas governor has ever done, serve two consecutive four year terms. He will have been in office a total of 10 consecutive years, which has allowed him to “burrow-in”, or imbed, his people into the bowles of state government as no other governor before.
With that in mind it’s crystal clear why Texas must have a new governor – Rick Perry’s been in office far too long. A new governor who will bring in, not just jobs, but good paying jobs that can support a family. Quality public education, affordable college tuition to ensure the next generations success, and a vision for the future of Texas. We can no longer afford the the same give-aways to the rich and corporations, like insurance, big oil.
Let us take the governor’s office back, for the people of Texas, on November 2nd.
If you’re a current of former public school teacher in Texas, or a current or former state employee you should read every word of what Paul Burka wrote in this blog post today, The TRS internal investigation. But below I will highlight the part specific to teacher and state employees, current and former. Before reading this keep in mind that Perry and his GOP cohorts, including GOP state Sen. Steve Ogden, do not want to raise taxes. They have no new tax money for roads and toll roads are an even worse answer. But there’s this big pile of money that teachers and state employees have been saving for decades just sitting there.
My concern goes beyond the specifics of the Green memo to the ultimate question of whether Governor Perry and his appointees are good stewards of $100+ billion in trust funds. In particular, I worry that Perry’s ultimate goal is to dip deeply into TRS and its sister fund, ERS, to build toll roads.
Remember this story from 2009?
Governor Perry is removing Linus Wright, a former Dallas school superintendent, as chair of the board that oversees the $88 billion Teacher Retirement System and will replace him with a current board member who is also a member of Perry’s campaign finance team, Dallas real estate investor R. David Kelly. (Wright succeeded Jim Lee, who was one of three co-chairs of the Perry fundraising apparatus; Lee had resigned in the wake of news reports that he had run up gambling debts in Las Vegas.)
The removal of Wright occurred just a few days after Perry had announced the death of the Trans-Texas Corridor. The juxtaposition of events reminds me of the old Mark Twain line: “Reports of my death were greatly exaggerated.” The concern is that the governor’s office has installed a crony as chairman who will urge the board to invest retirement system funds in toll roads as a means to pump money into funding-starved TxDOT. Perry appointees who don’t go along –as we have learned in the case of boards of regents and the Forensic Science Commission — are likely to find themselves replaced.
I’m not just being an alarmist here. Remember, in the summer of 2008, Perry, Dewhurst, and Craddick signed a letter agreeing to work together to find a way to pay for new roads. An earlier Statesman story about the agreement said:
One prong of the plan would create a Transportation Finance Corporation to allow state investment funds — including the state employee and teacher retirement systems, among others — to directly invest in state transportation projects. Combined, the two state systems manage $135 billion in assets.
But TRS and ERS officials “took a cautious view of investing in state projects in testimony this year before the Senate Finance Committee, saying a mandate to invest in Texas infrastructure could conflict with their duty to find the best return on investment for retirees.”
Toll roads are highly questionable investments. Their success depends on the accuracy of traffic forecasts, which can be influenced by consultants who tell roadbuilders (and pension funds) what they want to hear. Their success also depends upon population growth and a healthy homebuilding climate, which we do not currently have. Toll roads are high-risk investments, the last kind of activity that pension funds should be invested in. [Emphasis added].
Burka hits this one out of the park. Anyone who has contributed to TRS or ERS, and votes for Rick Perry and his GOP cohorts, is putting their retirement savings at risk.
[UPDATE]: The blog Local Texans highlights so well what Perry has done to the governor’s office in Texas, For Perry, legal equals ethical.
Here’s a laundry list of the Perry topics we’ve covered over the course of the 2010 campaign season.
Texas Enterprise Fund & favors to friends for funds.
Texas Emerging Technologies Fund & favors to friends for funds.
Texas Teacher Retirement System & favors to friends for funds.
A posh $10,000 per month Rental Mansion.
$1 million settlement of lawsuit for illegal contributions during the Chris Bell campaign.
Refusing to debate or meet with editorial boards.
Green Party Ballot chicanery.
Calling the BP oil spill an “Act of God”.
Ignoring an $18 billion upcoming budget shortfall.
While he’s done many wrong things that are unethical, he hasn’t done anything illegal. We have certainly sunk very far. It’s long past time for a new governor, vote for Bill White.
Williamson county early voting is running about double that of previous gubernatorial election years 2002 and 2006; however, it lags behind presidential election years 2004 and 2008.
This may be a trend toward greater overall voter acceptance of the early voting process, or it could indicate greater than average interest in voting. It won’t be clear until a final voter turnout estimate can be calculated with some degreee of certainty.
The intimidation is believed to be a part of a coordinated effort between Republicans and a corporate-back group named the King Street Patriots. Persons representing King Street have been observed at polling locations conducting private conversations with voters and elections workers, activity prohibited by Texas Election Code.
The situation in Houston is particularly volatile, given the mysterious fire that destroyed all of Harris county’s 10,000 electronic voting terminals. Democrat Bill White, running for governor, served two terms as Houston’s mayor, enjoying widespread popularity. The effect of depressing voter turnout in Houston would provide Gov. Rick Perry an edge in what is expected to be a very close race.
Texas Democratic Party general counsel Chad Dunn is in Houston giving a press conference to raise awareness of these potential violations of state and federal law, and to let Houston’s voters know their rights.
The Main and Branch locations are the full time voting locations. Click here to get a look at sample ballot. Early Voting Schedule:
All Locations Map
Full-time Locations:
Monday, October 18 through Friday, October 29
7am to 7pm Weekdays and Saturday
Noon – 6pm Sunday, October 24
Main Location:
Williamson County Inner Loop Annex, 301 SE Inner Loop, Georgetown
Branch Locations:
Parks & Recreation Admin. Bldg., 1101 N. College St., Georgetown
Sun City Social Center, 2 Texas Dr., Georgetown
McConico Building, 301 W. Bagdad St., Round Rock
Round Rock Randalls, 2051 Gattis School Rd, Round Rock
Brushy Creek Community Center, 16318 Great Oaks Dr., Round Rock
J.B. & Hallie Jester Annex, 1801 E. Old Settlers Blvd., Round Rock
Anderson Mill Limited District, 11500 El Salido Pkwy, Austin
Cedar Park Public Library, 550 Discovery Blvd., Cedar Park
Cedar Park Randalls, 1400 Cypress Creek Rd., Cedar Park
Pat Bryson Municipal Hall, 201 N. Brushy St., Leander
Taylor City Hall, 400 Porter St., Taylor
Hutto City Hall, 401 W. Front St., Hutto
Mobile Temporary Locations:
Monday, October 18 through Friday, October 29 10am – 6pm
Sunday, October 24 Noon – 6:00 pm
Monday, Oct. 18
Thrall VFD, 201 S. Main St., Thrall
Cowan Creek Amenity Center, 1433 Cool Springs Way, Georgetown
Tuesday, Oct. 19
Granger City Hall, 214 E. Davilla, Granger
Cowan Creek Amenity Center, 1433 Cool Springs Way, Georgetown
Wednesday, Oct. 20
Weir Fire Hall, 450 FM 1105, Weir
Cowan Creek Amenity Center, 1433 Cool Springs Way, Georgetown
Thursday, Oct. 21
Seton Medical Center Williamson, 201 Seton Parkway, Round Rock
Georgetown ISD Admin. Bldg, 603 Lakeway Dr., Georgetown
Friday, Oct. 22
Seton Medical Center Williamson, 201 Seton Parkway, Round Rock
Georgetown ISD Admin. Bldg, 603 Lakeway Dr., Georgetown
Saturday, Oct. 23
Liberty Hill Annex, 3407 RR 1869, Liberty Hill
Georgetown ISD Admin. Bldg, 603 Lakeway Dr., Georgetown
Sunday, Oct. 24
Liberty Hill Annex, 3407 RR 1869, Liberty Hill
Georgetown ISD Admin. Bldg, 603 Lakeway Dr., Georgetown
Monday, Oct. 25
Jarrell Memorial Park, 1651 CR 305, Jarrell
RR Higher Education Center, 1555 University Blvd., Round Rock
Tuesday, Oct. 26
Andice Community Center, 6600 FM 970, Andice
Highland Estates Independent Retirement Living,
1500 N. Lakeline Blvd., Cedar Park
Wednesday, Oct. 27
Florence VFD, 301 S. Patterson Ave., Florence
Highland Estates Independent Retirement Living,
1500 N. Lakeline Blvd., Cedar Park
Thursday, Oct. 28
Clairmont Retirement Community, 12463 Los Indios Tr., Austin
Highland Estates Independent Retirement Living,
1500 N. Lakeline Blvd., Cedar Park
Highland Estates Independent Retirement Living,
1500 N. Lakeline Blvd., Cedar Park
Special Mobile:
5pm – 9pm
Thursday, Oct. 21 & Friday, Oct. 22
Georgetown ISD-High School Annex Cafeteria,
2295 N. Austin Ave., Georgetown
Liberty Hill ISD-Head Start Office (Rear of Elementary School)
1400 Loop 332, Liberty Hill
Thursday, Oct. 28 & Friday, Oct. 29;
Liberty Hill ISD-Head Start Office (Rear of Elementary School)
1400 Loop 332, Liberty Hill
The editorial board at the Austin American-Statesman endorsed Jeff Maurice for Williamson County Commissioner, precinct 4.
Maurice, a lawyer and critic of the landfill expansion, is passionate about his cause and uses that as an example of how lax government oversight over development can affect lives as well as property values.
Unfortunately, the AAS, in the same article, endorsed Cynthia Long for precinct 2 commissioner. The editors contort themselves painfully in order to build up a case for Long, and the best they could produce was:
(W)e think the fact that Long has priorities speaks volumes. To lead is to choose, as the expression goes, and Long, 48, has amply demonstrated she isn’t afraid to choose.
In other words, the choices themselves were horrible, but at least she had the guts to make them. This sounds like a rehash of the paper’s 2004 endorsement of George W. Bush.
Some are whispering that choosing to break the law is one of Long’s “leadership” qualities. Those rumors have led to an investigation that burst into the headlines of the Williamson County Sun this past week. Do we expect the all-Republican county government to clean itself up? There’s only one way to wake our county leaders up, and that is to vote as many out of office as possible.
Jeff Maurice and Jim Stauber represent long overdue change at the county. Democrats missed by 300 votes knocking off Lisa Birkman in 2008. No doubt, there are at least that number of Hermine flood victims that voted for Birkman who wish they could have that one back.
This week Rick Perry has been forced to answer about why his good buddy, and campaign donor, got a deal that no one else in Texas has gotten. Today, via Rick Casey at the HChron, we get a little more on what happened.
Walter Ulrich took umbrage at my Sunday column. I don’t blame him.
As head of the Houston Technology Center, Ulrich is in the business promoting hi-tech startup companies.
And Ulrich furthers that cause by chairing Gulf Coast Regional Center of Innovation and Commercialization. That’s the committee that screens applicants from this region for grants from the from the state’s now-controversial Emerging Technology Fund.
[...]
In a conversation Thursday, Ulrich assured me that he and most members of his screening committee are very nonpolitical.
I found him quite sincere and his arguments impressive.
Unfortunately, Perry appears to be working hard to provide evidence for the opposing view.
[...]
In recent weeks, Perry has announced millions of dollars in grants from the fund in Dallas, San Antonio, Houston and Austin, all trumpeted on the fund’s website.
But the $4.5 million grant was not announced, is not mentioned among the website’s press releases, and is not included among what appears to be a comprehensive list of 123 “commercialization” grants totaling more than $154 million on the website’s “dashboard” page.
Then comes the Austin American-Statesmen on Thursday with a story revealing that Alan Kirchoff, who was director of the fund at the time the $4.5 million grant was quietly awarded, personally accompanied Nance in meetings with a variety of state officials seeking state funding for another new company weeks after resigning from his state position in August.
Unaware of ties
That revolving-door pairing hardly inspires confidence in the approval process.
When I talked to Walter Ulrich on Thursday, he said he wasn’t aware of the $4.5 million grant when he wrote his e-mail to me Sunday, nor of Kirchoff’s apparent ties to Nance.
Still, he thinks the screening process has integrity.
I believe he’s right for most of the awards and hope he’s right for all of them.
It certainly is interesting that this one deal was not publicized, almost like they wanted it hidden. The screening process does have integrity, but only if it’s used. In this one case it wasn’t, and that’s the reason this is an issue. Why was this one deal allowed to skirt the screening process. It sure looks like it’s because a Perry donor, and a former insider, knew how to, shall we say, massage the system. This story has a drip, drip, drip quality to it.
Maldonado had an impressive first term, helping to secure money to expand higher education opportunities for her constituents and earning the respect of high tech heavy hitters like Austin lawyer Pike Powers, who appears in her television spots.
[...]
The difference that gives Maldonado the edge in this race is her background as a school board member, a valuable perspective. Another perspective she brings is that of a veteran agency employee. She worked at the state comptroller’s office for 20 years before being forced out when she decided to seek the office.
There’s no doubt that Maldonado has represented her district well and has earned reelection.
